Anger Management Trends

As the title implies, this site will continually update changes and trends in anger management services, research,referrals and provider training. In addition, books,CDs,videos and DVDs used in anger management programs will be introduced.

Friday, February 29, 2008

Organizational Anger Management Training for Incivility

Since 1975, anger management has been the treatment of choice for person-directed aggression, road rage, simple battery and other acts of verbal or physical aggression. Anger management is currently used in schools, jails, prisons, probation, parole, mental health, social service organizations, as well as business and industry. The United States Postal Service is the largest, and probably the most successful, organization offering anger management to its employees.

During the last ten years, incivility, which is defined as deliberate discourtesy, has become a subject of concern in higher education, government, business and the legal profession. The difference between inappropriate expression of anger and incivility is difficult to discern. Both are costly in terms of its impact on morale, productivity and legal liability.

Incivility is a business concern that has been in existence for many years because of its impact on the workplace environment. It has existed in both small and large businesses. It crosses the line from sales organizations to manufacturing companies. It exists in service industries and in professional businesses. You can experience incivility dealing with subordinates, peers or superiors. If you look hard enough, you can find it almost anywhere. But what is incivility?

Beside the fact that incivility is a bad thing, it is a significant expense to the operation of an organization. Victims of incivility can suffer from increased stress, anxiety, exhaustion, sleeplessness, depression, anger and embarrassment. Loss of work time, sickness and workmen's compensation claims can be the result of incivility in the workplace. Many times, employees would rather quit their jobs and move on to another job than report an incident. Hostile work environments subject the organization to costly litigation.

Attorneys, paralegals, legal secretaries and legal staff work in a consistently stressful, competitive office environment. Realistic and unrealistic deadlines, hectic schedules, adversarial and combative bantering, highly-charged attorney or client meetings, to name just a few, are the backdrop to the legal habitat. Incivility is born in that workplace, the office or the firm. Workplace contemptuousness is brought to life by attorneys, paralegals or coworkers.

Bar Associations in Illinois, California and Utah have called for the training of lawyers in “civility”. Management Training Organizations have developed training in “etiquette” designed to improve civility in the workplace. The Joint Commission of the Accreditation of Health Care Organizations has mandated that all hospitals establish written policy relative to the handling of “disruptive physicians”. It is estimated that 5% of all physicians exhibit disruptive behavior from time to time. To date, incivility is beginning to pervade our political landscape and most other areas of our society.

Staff development training is needed to recognize what constitutes incivility, so everyone can be more cognizant and controlling of their behavior. Each individual must manage his or her own stress, frustration and anger. We must honestly and thoroughly examine our behavior, and change it if necessary. All employees should be required to treat coworkers with the same respect, dignity and fairness with which they treat clients, customers or patients.

Organizational Anger Management Training for Incivility can best be provided in small groups of 15 or less. Each participant should be given an assessment to determine his or her level of functioning in recognizing and managing anger, stress, assertive communication and emotional intelligence. Client workbooks, which cover these topics, are then the focus of the training.

Monday, February 25, 2008

John McCain, The Poster Boy of Anger Management

Senator McCain’s recent calm handling of the New York Times article alleging inappropriate contacts with a lobbyist suggest that he may have successfully completed an Executive Coaching/Anger Management class.

This type of coaching helps the participant define his/her strengths and weaknesses relative to anger, stress, communication and emotional intelligence. It is well known that temper tantrums and explosive behavior are characteristics of Senator McCain during his twenty-five years in government.

His response to the charges made in the New York Times article are indications of the kind of enhancement skills taught in Executive Coaching classes. In his statements to the press, he appeared calm, focused, honest in his feedback, and assertive as opposed to aggressive. There were no signs of hostility, rage, intimidation or controlling. All behaviors for which the Senator is known for.

Perhaps, a remedial course in anger management may be useful for George Bush.

George Anderson is Selected As Editor of Anger Management Forum

George Anderson is now the new Editor of the Anger Management news page on www.topix.com. Topix is one of the most powerful news sources on the Internet. All Certified Anger Management Providers, as well as interested professionals from Human Resource Management, Social Services, Mental Health, Education, Health Care Organizations, Risk Management Specialists, Criminal Justice Staff and Law should visit and contribute to this forum. Membership is free and easy.

I will have all of the preliminary work done within the next three days to establish my presence, and you will notice the results of my efforts to keep the lay and professional public informed of the developments in anger management soon.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Anger Management Guru, George Anderson to be featured on the British Broadcasting Channel

British film maker, James Runcie is scheduled to feature George Anderson in two one hour films for the BBC Television on the subject of anger management. Writer and presenter Griff Rhys Jones will appear in both films.

Anderson & Anderson® has remained the largest provider of anger management in the nation. We teach skills utilized for managing the following areas in one's life: communication, anger management, stress management, emotional intelligence (empathy), and motivation to change. Our curriculum and teaching style has had a profound effect on those who have enrolled and completed our program. We see this not only in our class attendance, client numbers, and internet saturation, but also in the number of calls we have received from those in the film industry (both documentary and creative entertainment) who would like to learn more about, and create projects that relate to, the Anderson & Anderson® model of anger management.

This is a good opportunity for both Anderson & Anderson® and widely recognized networks, such as The BBC, to promote the effectiveness of anger management as an intervention and tool for improved daily life.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Consumer Fraud Alert

The Anderson & Anderson® Model of Executive Coaching/Anger Management for Physicians is not a service that can be provided by any organization other than Anderson & Anderson®. Executive Coaching uses a different set of assessment tools, separate client workbooks and post intervention that are not part of the one day training received by our Certified Anger Management Providers.

If a provider claims that “We also are skilled at the Anderson & Anderson method for physicians who need assistance with stress and anger management. We use a one-on-one, individualized, sensitive intervention model for physicians. This executive coaching class is consistent with the Joint Commission’s new requirements for abusing physicians and is approved by the California Board of Medical Quality Assurance as well as medical boards in Texas, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and Florida. This program is listed in the Directory of Physician Assessment and Remedial Education Programs, Federation of State Medical Boards.”, contact any of these boards and you will quickly find that these claims are untrue.

Anderson & Anderson® is contracted to provide Executive Coaching/Anger Management for “Disrupted Physicians” nationwide. A partial list of organizations which we provide services to include Kaiser Permente of Southern California, Hospital Corporation of America and Tenet Health Care.

For information or to arrange help for a physician or health care employee, contact our office at 310-207-3591 or visit our website at http://www.andersonservices.com/.

Monday, February 18, 2008

A Slowdown in the U.S. Economy Results in an Increase in Anger

In past economic slowdowns, there has been an increase in all forms of person and property directed aggression. This includes battery, vandalism, spousal abuse, substance abuse, child and animal abuse. Anger is a secondary emotion and almost always a reaction to some perceived environmental stress.

A change in income, loss of a job, foreclosures or layoffs are not only anxiety provoking, but a source of frustration and anger. Therefore, we can expect an increase in all of the behaviors that are typically related to stress. Similarly, cutbacks in health, social services and other mandated governmental programs can be expected to add to the laundry list of stressors in the lives of average people.

Anger management should be considered a positive intervention for stress, communication, emotional intelligence and anger management. Such programs must always begin with an assessment, then followed by skill enhancement in the problem areas.

THREE DAYS OF ANGER MANAGEMENT CERTIFICATION TRAINING

The Anderson & Anderson model of anger management is the most effective and widely recognized curriculum in the world. This model, which has been featured in Los Angeles Times Magazine, focuses on enhancing emotional intelligence and assertive communication while introducing behavior strategies for identifying and managing anger and stress. Our certification training and approved provider list are the industry standards and dominate the internet.

The First day of training will focus on Adolescent Anger Management and will use the Anderson workbook “Controlling Ourselves” as the text. A demonstration and discussion of the Conover Assessment Component will be conducted. This one-day training is designed for Nurses, School Counselors/Psychologists, Substance Abuse Counselors, Case Managers, HR Managers, Clinicians, Probation Officers, as well as staff from group homes, and agencies serving families and youth. This curriculum is currently being used in school districts in Los Angeles, Oakland, Sacramento, Concord and San Diego, as well as school districts in Texas and Louisiana. In addition, probation departments in Arizona, Kansas, California and Texas use this model.

On the Second day, Adult Anger Management will be examined. A demonstration of the Conover Assessment will be conducted with a discussion of its usefulness. “Gaining Control of Ourselves,” in conjunction with experiential exercises and videos, will be used to initiate the participants to this intervention. Most major corporations have accepted this model for use by H.R. and EAP Managers.

The Third day of Training is Advanced Anger Management. An overview of the adult & adolescent trainings will include discussions on branding, marketing, and the process of capitalizing on your anger management practice. Those who attend all three days will receive a copy of the Motivational Interviewing Component on CD-ROM.

COST: $500.00 per day includes client workbook, facilitator guide, and certification. *Those attending all three days will receive a 30% discount on all Anderson & Anderson DVDs and CD-ROMs purchased on the training days. And for a limited time, Anderson & Anderson® is now offering it's groundbreaking Session One DVD free of charge to those who attend all three days of training.

Colbert B. Williams, Sr., Anderson & Anderson® Ambassador at Large

Colbert Williams is a University of Southern California trained Clincal Social Worker with extensive experience in Psychotherapy and Anger Management. Since joining the Training Faculty at Anderson & Anderson®, Mr. Williams has emerged as an effective spokesman for Anderson & Anderson® and all of the services we provide.

In addition to his national on-site Executive Coaching/Anger Management for Physicians, he is partnering with Anderson & Anderson® in pursuing Executive Coaching/Anger Management Contracts with Major League Sports organizations.

The Executive Coaching/Anger Management Curriculum for Physicians developed by George Anderson, BCD, LCSW, CAMF is by far the most recognized and accepted intervention of this type for “disruptive physicians”. While in Florida providing coaching for an Illinois based physician, I contacted some of the Health Care Organizations in Florida and was surprised and pleased to find that they all knew about George Anderson and his incredible work with physicians relative to emotional intellicence, stress management, communication and anger management.

I feel honored to be a part of the Training Faculty at Anderson & Anderson.

Friday, February 15, 2008

New Twist in On-Site Training for Physicians

Anderson & Anderson® is the largest approved provider of Executive Coaching/Anger Management for Physicians in the nation. This coaching is available in our Los Angeles Office or on-site anywhere in the U.S. Many doctors, especially from the Mid-west and East Coast, prefer to come to our Los Angeles office and combine the Coaching with a mini-vacation.

The latest trend, however, is to select a vacation location such as Florida, Hawaii or San Diego. Since the seriousness of the intervention is not altered, Anderson & Anderson® is comfortable in accommodating physician clients in anyway possible.

For information or to enroll in our Executive Coaching/Anger Management program for Physicians, contact our office at 310-207-3591 or visit our website at www.andersonservices.com. You may also send an e-mail to georgeanderson@aol.com. Anderson & Anderson® is the industry standard in Executive Coaching/Anger Management for Physicians.

I am currently in Orlando, Florida providing coaching for an Illinois based physician.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Effective Decision Making Requires Emotional Intelligence

Definition: Decision Making is using problem solving skills to discover and choose a course of action most likely to get the desired results. Problem solving and decision making are two separate things. Problem solving means being coerced to make a decision because of things not in one’s control.

Decision making means to choose to make a decision because one wishes for something to happen that is not happening at the present time. Decision making is used because one wants something to happen while problem solving is used when a question needs to be answered. In both cases, emotions play a key role. If you do not know how you feel about a particular issue, you are paralyzed in making a decision about that issue.

Steps to Problem Analysis:

Step 1. State the problem.

Step 2. Accept that it is your duty or responsibility to solve the problem.

Effective Decision Making is a skill that can be learned or enhanced by learning the four components of Emotional Intelligence. These components are personal self-awareness, anger management/self management, social awareness/assertive communication, stress management and empathy.

During the Coaching sessions which follow the assessment, skill enhancement in all or any of the above areas become the focus of the coaching intervention. This skill enhancement program is especially effective with persons seeking to make major changes in their lives.

What do National League baseball teams that rally to win late-inning games have in common with highly productive workers? According to Martin Seligman, president of the American Psychological Association, professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, and author of “Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life” (Pocket Books, 1990), the answer is, quite a lot.

While studying the performance of players and managers in Major League Baseball, and of players and coaches in the National Basketball Association, Seligman found a remarkable correlation: Optimistic teams — as measured by how they talk about their performance in the sports press — play better under pressure than do pessimistic teams. For Seligman, the finding marked a new way to think about competition, work, and life. “For my whole life, the field of psychology has concentrated on correcting what’s wrong,” says Seligman. “But rather than trying to minimize what’s worst in life, we should maximize what’s best.”

Seligman developed the concept of “learned optimism” — and applied it directly to workplace productivity. “When pessimistic people run into obstacles in the workplace, in relationships, or in sports, they give up,” he says. “When optimistic people encounter obstacles, they try harder. They go the extra mile.”

What is Seligman’s advice on learning to be optimistic? Realize that when you react to adversity, you’re reacting not to an event but to how you feel about that event. You may not be able to control what happens to you — but you do have some control over your emotions. “When adversity strikes, how you think and what you believe determine how you feel and what you do,” he says.

Optimism in difficult situations, says Seligman, not only wins close ball games — it also helps people to grow in their careers. “How you handle adversity in the workplace tends to have much more impact on your career than how you handle the good stuff,” Seligman says. “The people who know how to overcome adversity are the ones who rise to the top of the organization.”

The Anderson Family Supports Obama

One of the best antidotes to incivility in American Politics may well be the election of Barack Obama. George, Nancy, Bryan, Jason and Ania have all decided to contribute financially and ask all of our friends and associates to do the same.

To make a contribution, visit the Obama website and make a pledge for peace and civility.

Thursday, February 07, 2008

California State Bar to Encourage Civility Among Lawyers (What a Concept!)

In a recent article, Law.com reported that President-elect of the California State Bar Association, Sheldon Sloan, has launched a civility initiative "aimed at cracking down on what he and many others perceive to be a rapidly rising increase in rude and rancorous run-ins between attorneys in all practices of law." Non-lawyers might think this is some kind of joke ("What? two intelligent, well-educated adults can't behave amicably to each other?"), but the truth is that with clients expecting their attorneys to act like bulldogs in board rooms and court rooms, anecdotal evidence indicates that the level of disrespect and discourtesy between lawyers continues to descend to new lows.

In fact, we have decided to launch a new content category on the JD Bliss Blog - Uncivil Lawyer War Stories - so that our readers can vent their frustration concerning unpleasant, discourteous or downright nasty behavior exhibited by opposing counsel during depositions, negotiations and other contexts. Hopefully, people will read these stories and realize just how ridiculous such behavior is, and just how much stress levels would drop and how much more pleasant practicing law would be if lawyers could simply behave civilly towards each other even when they vehemently disagree.

Back to the California State Bar program: Sloan cited various examples of incivility that anyone practicing law will immediately recognize: lawyers who schedule depositions to derail opposing counsel's vacation schedule, big firms that paper solo practitioners to death, or attorneys scheduling hearings for the day after Thanksgiving when many people take long weekends (note: all examples from litigation practice - any "war stories" from transactional attorneys???).

Sloan's solution: having the State Bar adopt a civility code and pressuring attorneys statewide to sign it and abide by it. He also hopes to convince judges to consider sanctions for rude behavior.

Some may scoff at the notion that lawyers will pay any attention to a "manners" code, but there is precedent that it works. Christopher Arriola, president of the Santa Clara County Bar Association, said he's noticed a difference in lawyers' attitudes since that county adopted a civility code for lawyers in 1992.

"We haven't done any official study," Arriola said, "but it's fair to say most people who sign the code take it seriously, and that has had a positive effect on litigation in the county." Attorneys who sign the code get a star placed next to their photo in the association's membership guide, which Arriola said is a way of letting others know who's committed to the pledge. Seems lawyers might behave unprofessionally, but don't necessarily want to develop a reputation for it.

We'll keep you posted on this long overdue initiative. We hope other state bar associations across the country will take notice and initiate their own civility programs.

Monday, February 04, 2008

Tips to Improve Your Listening Ability

by Dr. Stephen D. Boyd, Ph.D.

Communication consists of providing information and receiving information. Unfortunately, we are good at talking, but we often have trouble listening. This is true in ordinary conversation, as well as on the telephone. One sage said, “The only reason we listen is because we know we get to talk next.” Here are some tips that can change your listening behavior now.

Questions you may have include:

•What can you do when talking to a person?•How do you improve in telephone conversations?•What can you do if you have problems listening?

Talking to the personTo improve your ability to listen, you can try a few simple techniques.

Listen for name

Repeat a person’s name when you first meet him or her. This will make you listen first and talk second. You want to have a mental set to become a better listener, and repeating a person’s name will help you do that.

Don’t hesitate to ask a person to repeat the name the second time, especially if the name is unusual. You are showing concern for the other person, which is an important aspect of listening. Use the person’s name in your response. "Is this your first time here, Suzanne?"

Ask a question instead of commenting

When you are anticipating making a comment on what a person has said, ask a question instead. This will keep you listening longer, and often the added information will help you make a higher quality contribution to the conversation.

Get information before you give information.

Telephone conversations

Here are some listening tips when talking on the phone.

--Pause to prepare to listenDon’t rush to answer the phone when it rings. Pause a moment so that you can be mentally ready to listen to the person calling you rather than thinking about what you were doing when the phone rang.

Taking these few extra seconds to think will make you a better listener from the beginning of the phone conversation.

--As if you will reportIn addition, listen as though you are going to report the message to someone else. This keeps you focused on the main reason or idea of the call.

--Eliminate clutterEliminate clutter around the phone and your desk so you won’t easily be distracted when you are talking by phone or have a person talking to you in your office. Notes, pens, folders, clocks, and knickknacks can distract you, and you may not even be aware of the distraction until you realize you have no idea what the person just said.

--Choose your timeWhen possible choose your listening time during the part of the day when you are mentally alert. If you are a morning person make your most important appointments, interviews, or phone calls during that time. If mornings are difficult for you, make afternoon calls. You lose listening acumen when you are tired physically or mentally.

--Admit your problemFinally, don’t be afraid to admit that you’re having a hard time listening and make necessary adjustments.

You might say, “I'm sorry I missed that last point. Please repeat that for me.” Or “I'm having a hard time concentrating; let me move to another chair.” Or “Could we pick up the conversation at a later time this afternoon? I need a break and some lunch.”

Any of these responses will tell people that you want to listen to their messages, and that what they have to say is important to you.

--In conclusionSome listening skills, such as suspending judgment, dealing with biases, and avoiding daydreaming, take time to develop because of the mental self-discipline they require. Following these tips, however, will improve your listening immediately.

Friday, February 01, 2008

Effective March 18, 2008, most future Anderson & Anderson Anger Management Facilitator Trainings including the required 16 Continuing Education will be offered on-line. All that is needed is internet access and a laptop or desktop computer. The participants will sign in and all of the material will be presented by George Anderson, BCD, CAMF and Colbert Williams, LCSW, CAMF. Opportunities for questions and comments in real time will be available.

Our first 8 hour training will be in two four hour segments on March 18 & March 19, 8-12 a.m.

Each participant will have the opportunity to complete the Emotional Intelligence Profile, which consists of an assessment system linked to a skill enhancement system. The assessment is scored, and then skill enhancement activities are assigned and delivered based upon the individual deficiencies identified in the assessment process. The skill-enhancement activities are unique in their approach. They do not simply present knowledge. The skills taught are taken beyond the knowledge stage so that they can be learned, modeled and practiced until they become a habit. Only through this learning, changing, modeling and practicing process can new behaviors be internalized. This knowledge is important for all providers of anger management using the Anderson & Anderson® curriculum.

Habits are formed by following this procedure.Affective skill enhancement refers to the systematic application of learning principles that will assist people in moving from present circumstances to desired new circumstances. If a person gives his little brother a dollar to leave him alone, he is assisting the brother to change his behavior. The Emotional Intelligence Profile works a lot like this example. It begins by changing the way one thinks about his or herself. It then involves a series of well-defined steps that result in a desired change of behavior. The success of each step is carefully evaluated to find the best—not the only—solution for a given situation. Each step is viewed as a process of learning, changing, modeling and practicing new personal skills.

Interpersonal Awareness, a Key Skill in Emotional Intelligence

One of the four domains of Emotional Intelligence is Interpersonal Awareness. Interpersonal Awareness is: understanding yourself, your goals, intentions, responses, and behavior.

An individual’s score on the EQ Map on this scale shows current feelings of how well he/she judges self and others. Interpersonal awareness requires a belief that in your eyes you are good enough to be accepted by yourself and others. A high score (skill to enhance) on Interpersonal Awareness shows an ability to express your thoughts and feelings in an easy and comfortable way to others. A low score (skill to develop) on this scale shows some of the problems in comfortably expressing how you think and feel.

Once you know your strengths and weaknesses regarding the domains listed above, you can begin the journey to enhancing your skills in these areas.

About Me

George Anderson,MSW,BCD,CEAP is a Psychotherapist and anger management expert. He has Post Gradute training in Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy from Harvard University School of Medicine.
He is a Diplomate in the American Association of Anger Management Providers and a Fellow in the American Orthopsychiatric Association.